overturned. a federal judge throws out california's ban on same-sex marriage. a permanent plug. bp will force comment down the damaged oil well today to seal it once and for good. and taking the stand. supermodel naomi campbell trades the catwalk for a courtroom. this is the "cbs morning news" for thursday, august 5, 2010. good morning, everybody, and thank for joining us. i'm betty nguyen. we start with this -- the question of same-sex marriage now be headed to the supreme court. in the first federal judicial ruling california's ban on same-sex marriage was overturned. the judge declaring proposition 8 was unconstitutional.

the decision, though, set off celebrations and promises to appeal. tara mergener is in washington with details on this. good morning, tara. >> reporter: good morning, betty. this ruling came after 13 days of testimony and arguments. it was a historic moment for gay rights supporters but certainly not the end of the fight. it's a major victory for supporters of same-sex marriage in a battle that could end autopsy the nation's highest court. >> we're on our way. we're one step closer to the equality we absolutely deserve. >> reporter: on wednesday judge vaughn walker proposition 8, california's voter approved ban on same-sex marriage, is unconstitutional. in his 136-page ruling he struck down every argument for the ban saying, quote, proposition 8 fails to advance any racial basis if singling out gay men and lesbians. >> this decision says we are americans, too.

we, too, should be treated equally. >> reporter: but same-sex couples won't be able to mary immediately in california. judge walker put a temporary hold on his ruling until at least friday after supporters of the ban filed an appeal. many believe the case will eventually end up at the u.s. supreme court, a ruling here could decide the issue of same-sex marriage across the country. california passed proposition 8 with 52 % of the vote back in 2008. >> it's pretty upsetting to me to see that one electedy is is able to just trample on my rights as a voter. >> reporter: they argue the ban is necessary to ban what they call the traditional notion of marriage. >> marriage unites a man with and a woman and each other and any children that come from the relationship. >> reporter: both sides are vowing to continue the fight no matter where it leads or how long it takes. and aappeal will go to the ninth circu circuit, then the supreme court if the justices agree to review

it. back to you. >> tara mergener joining us live in washington. thank you. today the senate is expected to confirm elena kagan's nomination to the supreme court. kagan's phenomenal nation was key baited wednesday. 51 says say shale back kagan. . in the words of president obama, the world's worst oil spill is finally close to coming to an end. bp will start pumping cement down the damaged oil well. meanwhile, the government says most of the oil that leaked has evaporated or cleaned up. about 30% of the spilled oil remains in the gulf, that's about 53 million

admire irup the radical u.s.-born cleric believed to be hiding in yemen. first lady obama is on vacation in spain, the first night of a five-day vacation. testify saying she was given a rare diamond. charlie d'agata joins us with the latest on this case. >> reporter: good morning to you, betty. now, i just returned from the courtroom where a very calm

naomi campbell changed the story she's now lng denied, now she admits receiving blood diamonds some 13 years ago. supermodel anyway ommy campbell a war crimes court at the hague she did receive diamonds during a trip to south africa. she said they were a few stones, a few small dirty looking stones. she said she didn't know who the diamonds were from but actress mia farrow told her that i must have come from former war lord charles taylor. her testimony can help convict taylor of war crimes. he's accused of receiving diamonds from rebels in sierra leone. he allegedly sent campbell a diamond after a dinner party in south africa. actress mia farrow says campbell told her about it the very next day. mia farrow herself is expected to testify here at the hague next week and the actress says she's confident her version of events is accurate.

in her words, you don't forget when a girlfriend tells you she was gwynn a huge diamond in the middle of the night. court observers say any proof the exchange took place could unravel charles taylor's defense. to say that he lied? >> to say he lied, because in his own testimony, he said he has never been in possession of diamonds. >> reporter: campbell will face intense questioning from taylor's defense team. they want to make sure the celebrity is not the star witness that brings taylor down. now, defense attorneys will want to pick naomi campbell's testimony apart. she herself says she didn't know where the diamonds came from so it may be difficult to trace it back to taylor. >> ween campbell requested a total media blackout. what happened to that? >> reporter: the court wasn't willing to grant a total media blackout, but what they were willing to accept was no filming in or out of the courthouse.

anyway ommy ca namemy campbell said it was from for her own safety. >> charlie d'agata joaning us live from the hague. on the "cbs moneywatch" stocks in asia mostly rose this morning. ashley morrison in new york with the latest on that. good morning. >> good morning. asian markets were up helped by strong earning reports by toyota. nikkei jumped 2% and the hang seng was off just a fraction. wall street will get the latest at retail sales. on wednesday, some encouraging news on jobs front pushed stocks higher. the dow gained 44 points while the nasdaq added 20. on criminal the senate is expected to approve a new $26 billion jobs bill today. the money would go to states to stop the lay ooff of nearly 300,000 teachers, firefighters and police officers. nancy pelosi says she's call the

house back for a final vote next week. 100,000 retired military men and women are owed back pay. last year congress approved a retro active bonus for every month military personnel were forced to stay in beyond their enlistment. retired troops have until october 21st to claim the money. hyundai is upping the ante when it comes to fuel efficiency. the automaker said on wednesday that all of its vehicles would average although least 50 miles per gallon by the year 2025. right now, about 60% of its vehicles hit that mark. by 2016, the government will require all cars and trucks to average at least 35 1/2 miles per gallon. well, august is barely under way, but school shopping is in full swing. according to an american express survey, the average family is budgeting $550 for school shopping and they're looking for bargains. the vast ma yoertd say they're shop on clearance racks and clip

coupons for savings. and apple might have a big security problem. the german government says that the operating system for the iphone, ipad and ipod touch has two critical security flaws that allow hackers to spy on virtually anything inside the device, password, photos, e-mails, and may even be able to listen in on conversations. apples they're investigating. that's scary, people can listen in on your --. >> and a lot of people do personal banking true the ipad. that is scary. ashley morrison joining us live in new york, thank you. just ahead, the morning news. the latest privacy concern over those airport body-scanning images. too close for comfort. a suspect backs up on top of a police cruiser. first, katie couric. >> it's the fifth most xonly

diagnosed cancer in this country. tonight a look at bladder cancer, a cancer we rarely talk about and too often miss. theetsonly on the "cbs evening news." medicine" only on the "cbs evening news." if you fight to sleep in the middle of the night,

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get lunesta for a co-pay as low as zero dollars at lunesta.com discover a restful lunesta night. hundreds of mourners jammed a roman catholic church near manchester, connecticut, last night for a memorial mass remembering the victims of tuesday's workplace massacre. earlier yesterday police released recordings of the frantic 911 calls. >> what's going on? >> somebody got shot. i got shot. >> i need some information, sir. >> we need the cops. omar thornton is shooting people. >> in all, delivery truck driver omar thornton killed eight people and wounded two more before taking his own life. the shooting erupted after thornton learned he was losing his job. family members say thornton had complained about racial harassment at work. a disclosure from the u.s. marshal service has reignited

the debate over body scanners used at airports and more and more at courthouses. the transportation security administration has insisted that scanned images of passengers cannot be recorded or stored. but the marshal service now admits that it saved tens of thousands of such images taken at a security checkpoint at a courthouse in florida. now to amazing caught on tape footage of the dash cam of a maryland police cruiser. the officer was chasing a carjacked suv last month and finally cornered it on the bridge. the officer figured the suspects couldn't escape. >> because driver's side door is pinned on the car and passenger side is pinned on the bridge. i'm like, they can't get out. they can't even run. next thing i know, i see the reverse lights and it's like, oh, this is good. and it came at me at first. i figured it would just hit me, not drive over me like big foot. >> but it did. that is wild looking. three teenagers in the suv were arrested after the vehicle

rolled over the police car. there were no serious injuries. a set bake for the fire department in a racial discrimination case. on wednesday the judge blocked the city from hiring 300 new firefighters. he ruled the entering exam the department uses discriminates against minorities. it prohibits any new hiring until october 1st. another hearing on the matter is planned. straight ahead, your thursday morning weather. in sports, when it happened, it was a no-doubter. a-rod joins baseball's 600 home run club. a-rod joins baseball's 600 home run club. [ sighs ] ugh.

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here's a look at the weather in some cities around the country. new york, thunderstorms, 93. miami, thunderstorms, 89. chicago, it's going to be sunny there, 85. denver, thunderstorms, 86. l.a., partly cloudy, 80 degrees. time now for a check of the national forecast. the latest satellite picture shows clouds moving toward the eastern sea board and lingering over the rockies. later today, extreme heat hangs over the southern plains and southeast. the risk of severe weather is moving into the northeast and mid-atlantic states. and on the west coast, expect mostly sunny skies. in sports, alex rodriguez made homer-hungry fans wait 12 games but in the first inning yesterday at yankee stadium, the wait was over. >> the 2-0. high drive, center field, deep, going back wells, looking up,

see ya! there it is, number 600. alex rodriguez, the youngest man ever to get to 600 home runs! >> a-rod's 600th homer came three years to the day after his 500th. and, by the way, the yankees beat toronto 5-1. congratulations, a-rod. in the national league, the dodgers' padilla put on a show, taking a no-hitter in the seventh against the san diego padres. in the eighth, andre ethier smacked a two-run hoker to cap a 9-0 dodger victory. american league texas rangers have a new owner, hall of fame pitcher nolan ryan. earlier today a group led by ryan won a ten-hour action in federal bankruptcy court with a bid that includes $385 million in cash. and the boston celtics have a new big man, shaquille o'neal. a free agent after one season in

cleveland, the 38-year-old shaq. how want-to-be pop stars are finding fame through youtube. guy: hey. son: hey mom! wife: what is this? guy: it's a special paste i invented to replace socks. wife: why? guy: because we can't find socks that shape to our feet. we're sick of it! announcer: hanes makes better-fitting socks. guaranteed or your money back.

[ female announcer ] sometimes, you can get so much out of so little. woohoo! especially when it comes to charmin ultra soft. it's so soft and absorbent, you can use 7 sheets versus 28. charmin ultra soft. enjoy the go. are fired. good morning. i'm ann notarangelo. john kessler and sydnie kohara are off this morning. the attempted robbery happened at about midnight last night in san francisco's bayview district. two suspects tried to rob the off-duty officer... that's when shots rang out. coming up at five: what police are telling us so far about what happened. it's called a charge for harm ordinance. san francisco is considering adding a fee to alcohol sales. why critics are opposed to it. how much money would be generated if the proposal goes through. the ends seem honorable enough... enroll students into college. but the feds say

the means... involved lies and pressure tactics. the results of an investigation into more than a dozen for-profit colleges. and we'll hear from one of the victims in last week's deadly bear attack in yellowstone park. join us for cbs 5 eyewitness news early edition ... beginning at five. good morning... it's thursday, on the "cbs morning news," here's a look at today's weather. powerful thunderstorms could impact the east coast today. they stretch from the southeast toward the northeast. and more unbearable heat is in store for the southern plains, but the worst is over. here's another look at this morning's top stories. mud forced down a damaged gulf oil well has sealed the leak. today bp plans to back up the mud with cement. today the senate is expected to confirm elena kagan's nomination to the supreme court. she would become the fourth

woman to serve on the nation's highest bench. for some aspiring pop stars, fame may just be a mouse click away. the video-sharing website youtube has become a new way to launch a successful career in music. ben tracy reports. ♪ >> reporter: 12-year-old grayson chant was the surprise star of sixth grade talent show in oklahoma. his lady gaga tribute was made for a few hundred people in his school gym, but now on youtube he's now been watched more than 30 million times. talk show host ellen degeneres saw it, created a music label and signed grayson at her first act. >> it's crazy how many hits this has. ♪ >> reporter: the preteen is now working on his album in los angeles. you've gone from playing in your grade school gym to living here in los angeles, making an album. >> yeah. >> reporter: what do you think

of that? >> it's -- it's crazy. but it's been so much fun. this is my dream. i've always wanted, always wanted to do this with my life. youtube is the latest website to rock the music world. instead of pounding the pavement in cities like los angeles or here in new york, aspiring singers can generate a fan base online and turn that into a record deal. >> it gives a voice to everyone in the entire planet who has aspirations of a career in recording and show business. ♪ >> reporter: thousands of harmonizing hopefuls are now uploading their work to youtube and myspace. ♪ i've bean way for a while now ♪ >> reporter: singer colby's myspace popularity led to a record contract and a platinum album. and youtube turned this low-budget a cappella group into a flashy man band. ♪ >> reporter: and took grayson from the grade school gym to hollywood.

ben tracy, cbs news, new york. ♪ fade away my job is to hunt it down. i'm fred lemond, and i'm in charge of bp's efforts to remove oil from these waters. bp has taken full responsibility for the cleanup and that includes keeping you informed. every morning, over 50 spotter planes and helicopters take off and search for the oil. we use satellite images, infrared and thermal photography to map and target the oil. then, the boats go to work. almost 6,000 vessels. these are thousands of local shrimp and fishing boats organized into task forces and strike teams. plus, specialized skimmers from around the world. we've skimmed over 27 million gallons of oil/water mixture and removed millions more with other methods. we've set out more than 8 million feet of boom to protect the shoreline. i grew up on the gulf coast and i love these waters.

we can't keep all the oil from coming ashore, but i'm gonna do everything i can to stop it, and we'll be here as long as it takes

an undercover federal investigation offers a glimpse into the world of white supremacist gangs. it appears that over the years, some groups have shifted their focus from spreading rhetoric to carrying out violent crimes. armen keteyian has the report. >> reporter: posing as a gun runner, this federal undercover agent opened a door into the rarely seen world of white supremacists. ultraviolent. sophisticated. less interested in a pure white race than the color of money. >> i didn't know if you already had a buyer or not. >> their criminal activity was first, robberies, burglaries, firearms trafficking, and then their white rhetoric and

recruiting was second. >> reporter: during the 2 1/2 year investigation, the atf undercover agent met with white supremacist gang members here at this hangout in omaha and other locations around town, setting up deals for drugs, guns and ammo. the leader of the eight-member group identified by their signature red suspenders was one jason "skin" hawthorne. a tree-time felon. virtually his entire crew had done time in federal prison. the breeding ground, experts say, for white supremacists. >> what has happened in the last 10 or 15 years, we have seen these gangs increasingly pilling out of the prisons and onto the street. >> reporter: particularly in california and texas, and now spreading across midwestern states. at least 5,000 white supremacists in prison today. experts estimate 50,000 nationwide. distinguished by an unceasing appetite for violence. >> that one would probably hurt worse. >> the constant talk about violent activity. their lack of respect for human life.

>> reporter: is this just cold-blooded violence, a thirst for violence? >> for them, i think it was a way of life. >> reporter: atf agents working what was known as "operation red swastika" called this gang the worst of the worse. citing the uts of stun guns stronger than those used by federal agents, radio scanners and virtual carbon copies of s.w.a.t. team outfits worn the night skin and his crew showed up at the undercover agent's apartment ready to rob what they thought was a drugstore, what was a sting. law enforcement officers were waiting in this nearby parking lot. all later eight men were arrested. >> it was a relief it was over. at least i thought it was over. >> reporter: because while awaiting trial skin put a contract out on the undercover agent's life and recruited a new gang member to bust him out of jail writing, i know you'll make this happen. remember 14 words, that's it.

we must secure the existence of our our people for a white future. the atf stopped the hit before it started. the gang of eight sentenced to a combined 147 years in prison for drug dealing and weapons trafficking. 32 alone for hawthorne. he's now serving time in this terre haute, indiana, prison. where he first embraced his pure white beliefs. armen keteyian, cbs news, omaha. and that's the "cbs morning news" for this thursday. thanks for watching. hope you'll join us later for "the early show." i'm betty nguyen. have a great day. have a great day. ,,,,

your realtime captioner is linda marie macdonald. caption colorado, l.l.c.